Mr. Grinch!

We practiced the letter Gg sounds with the Grinch and Gingerbread. We really enjoy the Grinch song!

Pilgrim Video

Here is a video taken of the Pilgrim reinactors at Plimouth Plantation doing all the types of things the real Pilgrims did. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Thanksgiving On Plymouth Plantation

Today we read the story, "Thanksgiving On Plymouth Plantation." In the story, the grandchildren had a grandmother that could magically transport them to places. In this story, she brought them back almost 400 years ago to the First Thanksgiving. Here is what Claudia liked about the book:

"I liked that they got to eat with the Pilgrims and the Indians. That would be fun."
~Claudia

Happy Halloween!

Here is a fun little Halloween video to enjoy. Have a happy and safe Halloween everybody!

Five Little Pumpkins Video

"Where the Wild Things Are"

Today we read "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak. It is a story about a wild little boy with a big imagination. Here is what Victor liked about it:
"I liked it when the boy said 'Goodbye' to the wild things and went home."
~Victor

The Monster Mash

This week our theme at school was "Monsters!" We got to listen to the "Monster Mash" while we worked on some of our monster projects. Here is a little video to go along with that fun song to enjoy at home.

"Midnight Fright" by Kathryn Heling

Today we read "Midnight Fright." There was a clock in the book to count down the hours to Halloween! Here is what Julian liked about it:

"I liked that there was a clock and they were going to have a Halloween party!"
~Julian

Signs Alphabet

Check out this fun alphabet from signs! Can you find all the letters from signs in our town?

Autumn's First Leaf

Today we read, "Autumn's First Leaf" by Steve Metzger. The leaves in the story were very surprised that they changed colors! Here is what Jake liked about it:
"I liked that the leaves were friends."
~Jake

Teddy Bear Picnic Video

This is a fun video we watched at school to go with our Teddy Bear week. The teddies are so cute!

Balloon Alphabet Video

We learned letter "Bb" this week! Bb is for balloons!

"Alphabet Rescue" by Audrey Wood

Today we read "Alphabet Rescue." Charley's alphabet went home to Alphabet City during vacation time. They helped to put out a fire! Here is what McKenzie liked about it:
"I liked it when they saved all the other letters."
~McKenzie

If You Made a Million" by David M. Schwartz

Today we read "If You Made a Million." It helped us to learn about money. We all want a million dollars now! Here is what Victor liked about it:

"I liked the picture of all the money stacked up to the sky!"

~Victor

"A Kiss Goodbye" by Audrey Penn

Today we got a brand new book to add to our classroom library and it is a sequel to our Chester books. In this book, Chester and his family must move to another tree because the tree cutters are going to cut down their tree. Here is what Lexi liked about the story:

"I liked the part when Chester made a new friend at his new tree and her name was Cassy."
~Lexi

Video for the Letter Aa

We watched this at school and thought it would be fun to add to our video collection on our blog.

"Fancy Nancy" by Jane O'Connor

We read a fun book today called, "Fancy Nancy." Nancy likes everything to be fancy. Here is what Lexi liked about this book:

"I liked it when the whole family dressed up fancy and went out to eat."

~Lexi

"Apples" by Gail Gibbons

This weed we've been learning about apples. Kaylie picked out a great book for us to read during storytime that taught us some interesting things about apples. Here is what Kaylie liked:

"I liked learning about the apple blossoms on the apple tree."

~Kaylie

Chicka Chicka 1-2-3

Today we read, "Chicka Chicka 1 2 3" by Bill Martin Jr. It was a lot like "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" except this time instead of a coconut tree we had an apple tree, and instead of letters, we had numbers. This is what Haleigh like about it:

"I liked how the 70 had long, yellow hair."

~Haleigh

Ten Little Fish

Today we read "Ten Little Fish" by Audrey and Bruce Wood. It is a counting to 10 book. Gauge said, "I liked it when they got lost and then they had 10 baby fish."
~Gauge

Brown Bear, Brown Bear Story Read By the Author, Bill Martin Jr.

Its fun to hear the story sung by the man who created it!

Fun Alphabet Video

Can your child name all the letters in this video? Are the capital letters or lowercase?

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Video

Here is a great video clip to go along with the story we read in school, "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom."

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

We read "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault. It is a fun story about letters that climb up a coconut tree. The tree gets too full of letters and "Boom Boom!" They all fall down! Here is what Cheyenne says about it:

"I kind of like it when they say "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" because it was kind of funny.
~Cheyenne

How To Help Your Child Read Their Nightly Little Books

This video is a wonderful example of the kind of help you can give to your child when you read the little books each night. This is similar to the same technique I do with the children during guided reading, as well. Enjoy!
~Mrs. Barker

Kindergarten Kids

Today we read "Kindergarten Kids" by Ellen B. Senisi. It was a "non-fiction" book with real photos of kindergarten kids. It talked about a day in the life of a kindergarten classroom. Here is what Caden had to say about it:

"I liked the part when they said the Pledge of Allegiance. We do that, too."

~Caden

Baby Animals

Today we read a book about baby animals. It was a "non-fiction" book. It had interesting facts about ducklings, piglets, fawns, kittens, and more! This is what Ben thought about it:

"I liked the baby pigs because they were little and they growed up and ate out of the big bowl. And I have a toy at my house and it is a farm, so I like this part."

~Ben

Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready For Kindergarten

Today we read "Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready For Kindergarten" by Joseph Slate. It is about a teacher getting her classroom ready, and all her animal students getting ready for the first day of school. It also is an ABC book! Here is what Amelia says about it:

"I liked it when she cleaned up her room and it was all ready."

~Amelia

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

Today we read "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See" by Bill Martin Jr. It is a book that we discovered we can even read! It has lots of different colors and animals in it. Here is what Caden says about it:

"I like it because it is fun and we can sing to it."

~Caden

Huggly's Goes To School

Today we read "Huggly Goes To School" by Tedd Arnold. Huggly and his friends are cute little monsters that like to explore the people world. This time, they end up in a school! Here is what Amayia said about it:

"Huggly had to wear clothes in the school so that he can look like people!"

~Amayia

A Pocket Full Of Kisses

Today we read "A Pocket Full Of Kisses" by Audrey Penn. It was about Chester Racoon (from The Kissing Hand) and how he got jealous of when his mom gave his little brother a kissing hand, too! Here is what Liberty had to say about it:

"I liked it when Chester's mom gave him and his little brother a kissing hand."

~Liberty

The Kissing Hand

Today we read a story called "The Kissing Hand" by Audrey Penn. It was about a little raccoon who didn't want to go to school until his mother gave him a kiss on his hand that he could keep with him. Here is what Cheyenne says about it:

"I liked it when Chester's mom gave him a kissing hand and he got filled with love."